Effects (Frames)
Applies to SuperStage 26H2.6 and later ｜ Read first: Selecting and Programming
SuperConsole's effect engine is called Frame. One Frame is made of a number of Steps, cycled between by a waveform, with phase distributed across the selected fixtures.
Put another way: steps define which states to pass through, the waveform defines how to travel between them, and phase defines where in that travel each fixture starts.
1. Steps
Each step records target values for one or more attributes:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Attribute Name | Attribute name |
| Absolute Value | Absolute value 0–1; -1 means not set |
| Relative Value | Relative value −1 to 1; 0 means no offset |
| Use Relative | Whether to use the relative or the absolute value |
| Width | The share of the cycle this step occupies |
| Enabled | Whether the step is active |
An absolute value means "go to this value"; a relative value means "offset the current value by this much". Use relative for position wobbles, absolute for a fixed colour sequence.
2. Per-Attribute Parameters
Within one Frame, each attribute can have its own run parameters:
| Parameter | Range | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waveform | Rectangle / Sawtooth / Sine / Cosine | Sine | Rectangle steps instantly, sawtooth ramps linearly, cosine is sine offset by 90° |
| Speed | 0.1 – 600 BPM | 60 | This attribute's own speed |
| Width | 0 – 100 % | 100 | Duty cycle: how much of one cycle the waveform occupies. 10% is a short pulse, good for strobe looks |
| Attack | 0 – 100 % | 100 | The share of time the rise transition takes. 0 = instant, 100 = smooth throughout. Only meaningful on the rectangle waveform |
| Decay | 0 – 100 % | 100 | The share of time the fall transition takes, as above |
| Phase Offset | −180 – 180 ° | 0 | A phase offset for the whole attribute, on top of per-fixture phase |
| Phase Range | degrees | 360 | Total span the phase is spread over across a group |
| Wings | 1 – 32 | 1 | Number of wings; folds the selection into symmetrical groups |
| Block | 1 – 32 | 1 | Block size; one phase per block |
| Group | 1 – 32 | 1 | Number of groups |
| Random Phase | 0 – 100 % | 0 | Adds a per-fixture random offset on top of the regular phase. 0 = fully regular, 100 = fully scattered. Each fixture gets the same offset every frame, so the result is a scattered look rather than jitter |
3. Phase Distribution
How phase is spread across the selected fixtures is decided by the selection tools — the effect itself does not reorder anything, it hands out phase in selection order. Combined with Wings / Block / Group this produces the usual symmetrical, blocked and alternating arrangements.
4. Effect Editor Toolbar
The Frame Editor panel has a vertical strip of tool buttons down its left side, top to bottom:
| Button | Effect |
|---|---|
| A+ | Creates a new step when no step is selected; merges the change into the selected steps when some are |
| R- | Remove steps |
| P | Adjust phase distribution |
| W | Select waveform |
| Sp | Speed. This page also carries TAP (set the speed master by tapping along to the music) and SYNC (make this effect follow the speed master instead of its own BPM) |
| Wi | Duty cycle |
| At | Rise transition. Only appears on the rectangle waveform; on every other waveform the button is hidden entirely |
| Dc | Fall transition. As above |
| Wg | Wings |
| Bl | Block size |
| Gr | Number of groups |
| Di | Playback direction, forward or backward |
| Rd | Random phase; scatters the per-fixture phase |
| Fd | Effect fade in and out, in seconds. The effect ramps up when it starts and settles back when released instead of cutting |
| Ms | Effect master: amplitude, speed multiplier and overall phase. Amplitude converges towards what is already on stage, so lowering it narrows the effect around the current look rather than fading to black |
| ? | Help, listing every button and how the step bar works |
The play / stop button sits at the bottom of the same strip.
5. Where Effects Sit in Output Arbitration
Effects belong to the playback layers, at the same level as the timeline / timecode cue / cue layers:
- Intensity attributes use HTP (highest wins);
- Everything else uses LTP (source priority first, then timestamp within the same source);
- The programmer overrides effects, and highlight overrides the programmer.
See section 3 of Cues and Playback.